1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to an embodiment which cools down LED lamps efficiently, and to the integration of the cooling system with the LED lamp.
2. Description of Related Art Including Information Disclosed Under 37 CFR 1.97 and 37 CFR 1.98.
Various cooling methods are used in different LED lamp types (especially in lamps having different power and light intensity). The general aim of all these cooling methods is to prevent the problems that are likely to occur doe to the high heat formed during operation. For example, in a simple LED lamp, a heat sink that performs heat rejection from the lamp surface by convection by means of passive cooling technique is generally used (active cooling methods might as well be used). This heat sink is typically made of metal. However, such cooling methods are not sufficient in case of using lamps with high power and light intensity. Therefore, more efficient methods are needed. In such eases, the surface of heat sinks is cooled down by a fan.
In particular, passive heat sinks of the LEDs used in lighting field provide cooling in direct proportion to the increasing surface areas. However, as in any field, achieving the desired (smaller and lower) size and weight is also required in the field of lighting. Moreover, the existing standards limit the size of these heat sinks. Hence, this technique cannot provide sufficient cooling in the lamps having a power value above a certain value, especially because of limited size. Although these values can be optimized to some extent by means of cooling methods with forced convection, the so called active cooling process, e.g. fans, they will not be sufficient beyond certain power values, besides causing increased cost. Therefore, due to the fact that the existing passive methods cannot provide the desired cooling and possible active methods lead to increased costs, the simple and efficient cooling method according to the invention has been developed. In addition, the cooling technique disclosed herein is the only and most efficient solution for solving the problem of hot spots formed both in the chips of LED systems where a plurality of LED chips are used, and in the phosphor used for changing color in LEDs.
The patent search carried out regarding the prior art revealed the Chinese patent application No. CN203099570 dated Mar. 19, 2013. This application discloses an air-cooled LED lamp which comprises the following components: an LED chip, an LED chip fixing board, a heat conduction tube, heat radiating fins and a fan. The LED chip is fixed on the LED chip fixing board. The LED chip is connected with the heat radiating fins below the LED chip through the heat conduction tube. The heat conduction tube is internally provided with heat transfer medium. The fan is provided below the heat radiating fins. Because the structure of the utility model is adopted, on a condition of same power, the air-cooled LED lamp has the following advantages: high heat radiation speed, high brightness, good color temperature, long service life and simple structure.
Another application revealed by the patent search is the Korean patent application No. KR20130061142 dated Apr. 21, 2011. The abstract of this application is as follows: A liquid cooled LED lighting device includes a sealed housing containing an LED element that emits light. Cooling liquid is contained in the housing to disperse heat generated by the LED element. An enclosure containing compressible material is preferably immovably positioned within the housing and outside of the optical path of the emitted light. The enclosure containing the compressible material compresses in response to expansion of the cooling liquid as it absorbs heat from the LED element. Advantageously, the cooling liquid and the enclosure containing the compressible material act to more efficiently cool the LED element, thereby providing higher light output and increased lifetime of the LED element.
As a result, due to the drawbacks mentioned above and the inadequacy of the existing solutions regarding the subject matter, it is required to make a development in the related technical field.